Democrats have gone from 0-60 in their mastery of the important political skill of “subtly exploiting a Kennedy death.” Yesterday, you’ll recall, America’s most unsuccessful technically successful senator Harry Reid announced that, uhh yeah, we’re all acutely aware that Ted Kennedy’s death is going to help our chances of doing what we want with health care. Like many things in politics, this was not okay for him to say despite it being completely true! Anyway, now this new plan, naming the health care bill after Kennedy… to honor him… NOW THIS IS HOW IT’S DONE. MORE »

“Q: How will U.S. Sen. (Edward) Kennedy’s death affect things?

“A: I think it’s going to help us.”

Maybe the Democrats should consider finding a somewhat more artful point-man on the (totally necessary!) “we are going to exploit the shit out of Ted Kennedy’s death” communications front. Or just a new Senate majority leader? [Ben Smith]

Ted Kennedy might have a mean old liberal Democrat replacement in the Senate soon! All the Massachusetts legislature must do is change the comical law that Ted Kennedy forced it to enact in 2004, the one that prevented Gov. Mitt Romney from appointing a Republican to President John Kerry’s Senate seat. The legislature has moved up a hearing from October to early September on a bill that would allow Gov. Deval Patrick to appoint a temporary replacement to Kennedy’s seat, immediately. Patrick will be looking for a replacement with such qualifications as the ability to press the “yea” button on a health care reform bill, and nothing else. Would it be hypocritical of the Massachusetts state government to amend this law right now? Yes. Good GOD, yes! But who cares? [Salon/War Room]

• GEORGE BUSH SR. SIMPLY WILL NOT ATTEND THIS FUNERAL: George H.W. Bush, an evil oil baron and son to a Nazi financier, will not make it to Ted Kennedy’s funeral in Boston Saturday, even though every other living president will be there. A spokesperson says that the old coot “feels his son’s presence would ‘amply and well represent’ the family Saturday.” COLD. [AP/Raw Story]

The official White House Flickr photo-porn stream has crassly brought POLITICS into the death of famous politician Ted Kennedy, by posting a set of pictures titled, “Remembering Senator Kennedy.” Yeah, more like “Remembering the Politician Ted Kennedy, instead of the apolitical national mascot we all loved as our own sort of Col. Sanders or whatever.” God, these Obamas …. [White House Flickr]

By the Comics Curmudgeon
If there is one thing guaranteed to enrage America’s arbiter of good taste, it is making any kind of snide remark about Ted Kennedy when he is ill or, in the current case, dead. Naturally, this rule has been flouted relentlessly for the past two days by the crassest, most awful people in the world, which is to say political cartoonists. Who are these heartless monsters, and why do they try so very hard to ruin our national conversation about how much we love Ted Kennedy? MORE »

Thank you for “dying,” Ted Kennedy, because now Barack Obama will have to end his vacation, and America’s vacation, a couple of days short, to attend your funeral on Saturday. In fact Barack and Michelle Obama will leave “the Vineyard” tomorrow night instead of the already early Saturday morning departure, to avoid expected bad weather. Popular “scoop factory” the New York Times, however, reveals that the Obamas also intend to sacrifice their children to the Gods! MORE »

Poor Matthew Cooper! The former Time reporter and current Josh Marshall slave or Atlantic slave or whatever has made the mistake of comparing the atmosphere on Martha’s Vineyard right now to that of New York City on 9/11. He will be apologizing on Twitter all day, so stop on by! We feel sorry for Cooper, though, if he thinks of freaking 9/11 every time a famous person dies on a nice weather day. [Twitter]

Evil Drudge Report slave Andrew Breitbart, creator of one of the Internet’s best comedy websites, has been goin’ all “Meghan McCain” on the Twitter today, since the “actual lion loose in the Senate” died. He thinks that Ted Kennedy is a poop monster! True. But at least he gave children basic health insurance. [Twitter, Think Progress]

…The Los Angeles Times! It is impossible to take anyone who uses the word “taint” seriously anymore, in this country. We blame this on Rod Blagojevich’s appointment of Roland Burris. [LAT]

We have been trying to find a full clip of Ted Kennedy’s “concession” speech to Jimmy Carter at the 1980 Democratic convention, which is about as fine a political speech as you’re likely to hear, ever, and most famous for its “The Dream Will Never Die” ending, which is… just… MMMM. It was so incredible that it may have fractured the party for good that year and helped Ronald Reagan win, but hey, whatcha gonna do. Anyway, the Boston Globe has been waiting for Teddy to die for some time and today has posted a well produced, multi-part biography on the YouTubes. Here is the segment on his 1980 speech, the text of which can be found here. Finally: audio of the last seven or so minutes. [YouTube]